Gateway Breakfast House

Woke up Saturday morning with a day to myself… Or it would have been if I have any ability to stay away from thrift stores. (Explanation: Roomies = Extended Family Sisters, Brother in Law and niece/nephews were going back to school shopping. I couldn’t resist! But I did try. I have no spawn of my own so must resort to playing “parent” to the children of others.)

I had a once in a blue moon hankering (Dear Gods, I think the Redneck Widow is infecting my vernacular!) for some breakfast starch namely pancakes. The Parental Units can attest that this is a rarity for me. So in an attempt to further my cause of trying new places I opted for the Gateway Breakfast House. About a 5 minute drive from home, sounded perfect.

Upon arrival I discovered that I was gravely underestimating the appeal of breakfast out to Portlanders. The place was PACKED! I was third in line for a table when I got there, and before I was seated there was another 10 people behind me. Had I done any research at all I would have learned that President Obama made an unscheduled stop here when he was in town. Lots of publicity, lots of hullabaloo and yet quite a few regulars as well. Waitresses were greeting customers by name and exchanging news about each other’s families and friends.

The menu was extensive and offered quite a selection, but I’m a sucker for a good deal so I opted for the 1,2,3,4 Country Special marked at $8.25 with coffee. My total came to $9.75 before tip and let me show you what I got for that.

[Check our Facebook Album for photo]

That is two pancakes, a ham steak at least 7” across and ½” thick, two eggs scrambled with cheese, and a slab of hashbrowns. It was so big I was quite intimidated. I settled for dicing the ham steak and mixing it with the hashbrowns and eggs before setting that aside and tackling the pancakes. I managed about 3/4ths of the pancakes before I just couldn’t stand it anymore. Got the rest in a to go container and made my way out the door. There was still a line out the door, people just didn’t stop coming!

I knew that if I went immediately home after that carb load I would end up back in bed despite my best laid plans so I met up with the shopping expedition and did my best to be helpful.

Still, what a way to kick off the weekend.

Gateway Breakfast House, friendly staff, great value, wonderful food. I highly recommend, but make sure you have some time to wait for that table. Very popular destination.

So many things...

Okay, returning from the sick/ exhausted place. Last weekend was shopping with the girls and a stop at Cartlandia (write up with pics soon) and then Olive Garden. Tuesday was a little cooking and all that fun stuff. Coaxing a few more contributors to sharing their dining experiences so hopefully there will be some more active voices on here soon. Fingers crossed!

Not dead, just a brief intermission while the Stage Manager gets the back of the house in hand. Until we see you again.

On Location...Idaho part 2

   Saturday morning we passed on the frozen breakfast sandwich fare being offered at my sisters and went on a hunt into town for food I can eat.  ( No eggs or pork for me)  We ended up in Cottonwood, Idaho at a great little place called The Hangout. 

    This is a great little place.  Vicious and I walked in to 2 larges tables taken up by about 30 girls in team sportswear hanging out, eating, and having fun.  I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich with a green salad.  (Are you detecting a pattern here yet?) Vicious had a mushroom burger with tator tots.  When we sat down I looked around and could tell that whoever owned this place was a supporter of sports, their community and progress.  They had a station set up with 3 or 4 laptop computers.  Yes folks, we found an internet cafe.  We waited a bit for our food but, that was alright with me as they were obviously busy. I like to have my food cooked to order so I don't mind a wait.    Vicious noted as we waited that we had finally found a restaurant with no flies.  This reminds me I forgot to tell you about our stop at Jack in The Box Friday in Umatilla, Washington.  Let me just say... Don't eat there. 

   We got our food from this great woman who came all the way out to our table.  (We ordered at a counter so I expected to go back up to the counter.)  She apologized profusely for the wait.  I told her it was no problem.  The food was great.  My chicken breast was moist and the food very fresh.  The portions were good and I really enjoyed this place all around.  If we had stayed in town longer we would have gone back.  We headed home that night and ended up at a Burger King we found along the road.  I don't even remember which city it was in.  The food was ok but,  more flies.  

On roadtrips I tend to like stopping at the Mom and Pop, Greasy Spoon kind of places.  I like an adventure and they usually have great portions.   Soooo..... If you are ever in Cottonwood, Idaho please stop at : 

                                                                                             The Hangout 
                                                                                             603 Front street
                                                                                             Cottonwood, Idaho 83522

    or try their email: hangout@mtida.net

Next time I will tell you about my adventures into Fubonn territory.
                                                                                           













http://www.cottonwoodidaho.org/

Cartlandia (Food cart pre-crawl)

Saturday was a day of grand plans, a little bit of compromise. But everything turned out well. Redneck Widow and myself were to be picked up by PainterLady and BellaBabe for a day of picking over the bones of a dying clothing store chain. Sad for the chain, good for us. I did the math and over 5 trips to the stores (spread out over a 3 week period) I acquired some $1,500 retail value of clothes for roughly $175. Completely revamped my wardrobe and without breaking the bank. Very, very, happy girl here. But you're not here to read about my shopping finesse.

We met up at about lunch time and after a fortifying stop at Dutch Brothers for caffeine (all hail the Dutch) we were on our way. Our goals were the Clackamas location, Eastport Plaza location, and then MAYBE the Cascade Station location if there was time before returning the Gresham Wunderland for a cheap seats showing of Snow White and the Huntsman and then dinner at the Olive Garden for their endless pasta bowl…Mmmm Pasta.

That was our goal. That was not what happened. The Clackamas location was LOOOOONG gone. The storefront empty, most of the signage removed. So on our way to the Eastport Plaza location we swung into Cartlandia, despite Redneck Widow’s misgivings. One thing Cartlandia has up on other food cart pods I’ve been to is the available parking, very nice.

BellaBabe and I led the charge, up and around the carts, investigating menus, what sounds best, what sounded good… Samples? Sure!

After walking the entire loop and inspecting every menu we settled on splitting a margherita pizza eith white sauce from Krust Artisanal Pizza and a couple of pasties (one Traditional and one Cheese and Onion) from the London Pasty Company while PainterLady and RedneckWidow had hotdogs and fries from Relish Gourmet Hotdogs.

BellaBabe and I ordered the pizza first and then headed across the way to the Pasty cart. The owner of the London Pasty Company was very helpful and understanding about our questions involving the ingredients (allergy issues) and very cheerful with a mesmerizing accent. Which is always fun. Also very emphatic about liking them on Facebook, which in this modern social media age I suppose I understand.

PainterLady and RedneckWidow found a shady table near Relish where they could listen for their orders to be completed. Both were telling us about the sweet couple who owned the cart saving up for a wedding and how very nice they were. Our pizza was delivered to the table and we took the requisite (now apparently gone) photos before digging in.

The pizza had a cracker style crust that seemed to have been pre-cooked and warm sauce ladled on (a bit heavy for our tastes) and then the sliced mozzerella was allowed to "melt" in the residual warmth from the sauce. The tomatoes were cold. BellaBabe and I thought back to Pyro Pizza's crispy crust, hunks of artisinal mozzerella and heat toasted basil... This was not what we wanted. On to the pasties!

Sad, so sad. The "Traditional" was as dry and flavorless as saw dust and left us begging for water. We were hoping for a moist filling with thickened gravy, no such luck. It didn't even appear that gravy had ever been involved in the equation. The Onion and Cheese was.. Well is was overly cheesy mashed potatoes stuffed into a pastry shell. It was a baked pierogie. It was... bland.

So while I know it doesn't excuse the tardiness of this post, remembering this experience was sad.

The highlight of the trip was PainterLady's garlic cheese fries, so good. But I'll let RedneckWidow share her portion of the journey.

Until next time, be tasty!

Fubonn Marketplace OR A Threeway Foray into the Unknown

Yeah, yeah, yeah I like to think my post titles are clever. I'm sure I'm not really as funny as I think I am, but then I reduce some people into asthmatic laughing attacks which makes me think... Maybe I am... Any who...

Last night Apocalypse.Mom, RedneckWidow, and I headed out for Fubonn and I found myself filled with excited energy. Like a hyper puppy. Really... I'm embarrassed for my friends as there was dancing in the aisles, skipping up and down aisles in search of the ever important soy free "red sauce" and other general obnoxiousness. Good thing I drove as the others may have been tempted to otherwise abandon me.

Of course I'm sure it will happen again. As most of my friends can attest I am easily excited, soon babbling away at such high speeds as to be nearly unintelligible. But I can't help it...

My food geek flag just flies to high it takes me off with it to new heights of embarrassment. Of course in the moment of ultimate geekery when I am practically vibrating with excitement; wanting to see, touch, smell everything all at once I am prone to attacks of utter gooberism. The high point of my night was that I was NOT the first one to offend the locals. That was RedneckWidow, and I'll leave the explanations to her.

We started by packing in the rear lot (shady spot) which is surprisingly large and you'd never notice it from the front of the building. Passed through the large circular archway over the doors and wandered through the complex, a little sadly empty, but still interesting with the variety of businesses housed inside. Lawyers, Realtors, Loan offices, Bubble Tea, Salons, Jewelers, Video shops, Seamstresses, and of course the Massive grocery outlet itself.

Apocalypse.Mom spoke up with the wisdom of eating something before diving into the grocery store as an attempt to prevent massive over spending. RedneckWidow and I agreed and we discussed food options. There is of course a deli within the market, as well as both a Korean BBQ and Pho shop located on the outside of the building.

 We opted to try the SokongDong Tofu & BBQ first, one with a grill on your table and where you order an assortment of meats and grill yourself. While things smelled wonderful, a peek at the menu revealed that this is not a "quick bite and run" establishment. For these prices it was a linger and enjoy the company type of place. Not in our budgets for the evening.

Unit #11
SokongDong Tofu & BBQ

Tel: 503-808-9990
Hour: 11am - 10pm

So we tried the Pho Ngon Vietnamese Restaurant

Unit #2
Pho Ngon Vietnamese Restaurant

Tel: 503-775-1373
Hour: 9am - 9pm

Much more in line with what we were looking for. Like an idiot I failed to take pics of our food when it arrived, but it was pretty and very tasty. I believe that Apocalypse.Mom ordered the #44 (none of us remember what it was called just that there was lots of fried fish over a metric TON of vermicelli noodles. And that it was good.). Redneck Widow attempted the Chicken Teriyaki, always a gamble given her allergy to soy. But it worked out. No adverse reaction and she cleaned her plate. Well... Almost.

I opted for the "SUPERBOWL" which was Pho (beef of course) with flank steak, well done brisket, honeycomb tripe, tendon, AND meatballs. Mmmm tasty. Point of note, the main difference between Asian meatballs and the more familiar Western variety is texture. Western meatballs are primarily a coarser grind of meat with a little binding agent to keep them together, while Asian meatballs are more of a hot dog consistency. Which can sometimes lend the sensation of chewing on a bouncy ball if over cooked. But these were quite good!

I failed to take before pics of our meals. I promise I'll get back into practice. I'll also have to improve my plan for getting a camera... Apparently wishing doesn't make it come true. Lamesauce. Any good (and reasonably priced) camera suggestions from the crowd?

The only down side to the dinner was the service. It was a bit... I don't know, very pushy at the beginning. The waitress seemed very exasperated with us when we asked for a minute to figure out our order. I get the impression that this place is used to people ordering before they even sit down. And at the end of the meal we had to get our own to go containers for leftovers and track down someone so we could pay. Very strange. Not a determent from returning, but very strange.

After dinner there was shopping! I gleefully plunged into the market, doing my best to not physically DRAG Apocalypse.Mom and Redneck Widow behind me. I may not have been as successful at this as I hoped. I happily grabbed raisin bread off the shelves, giggled and cooed over the bright snack packages while Apocalypse.Mom got to the serious business of grocery shopping and Redneck Widow plunged on in her quest for the soy-free.

I poked and prodded fresh Lychee for a project of BellaBabe, found some drinks. Some snacks, babbled incessantly about foreign produce.. Thinking back I start to wonder if maybe I was drugged, I was just... everywhere. Like those bouncy balls with all the knobs on the outside? Bouncing erratically from habeneros to duck eggs, from lemon grass to rabbit saddles, snapping random pictures and occasionally tossing things into the cart Redneck Widow was pushing for me.

I clearly recall dancing down an aisle using a shaker of dashi and another of "Umami seasoning" (straight MSG) as maracas to emphasize the beat in my head. It was like a fever and a frenzy of delight. We never found the red sauce. Does anyone know what it's called? The red sauce you get in Chinese restaurants for the dipping? NOT sweet and sour, there was at least a 10 foot long section of aisle dedicated to that.

I took pictures of things I found interesting, odd, or just... I don't even know why I took a photo of the live clams, and one of frozen fish? But I took them and here they are for your... Amusement?

Those are my highlights of the trip, other than that Apocalypse.Mom and I both bought 3 bags worth of items and she spent less than half of what I did. Clearly I have things to learn. Teach me oh wise one!

Please feel free to comment on my insanity. Talk to you all later!

Ritz Diner (or Breakfast with Fuzzy)

A weekend in Salem was wonderful. Made cinnamon rolls with the parental units (tasty tasty rolled pastries... Mmmm). Attended my Aunt's beautiful wedding to a delightful Irishman. Got a hefty dose of sarcasm from my blood relations. Happy sarcasm, we're a snippy and clever bunch of folks. Refreshingly irreverant.

This morning I kidnapped my good friend Fuzzy and took him to breakfast.

A smidgeon of back story. Fuzzy and I both reside in Portland, but our parental units dwell in Salem. About 6 blocks apart from each other. And usually when we're in town we eat at buffets, well known Chinese restaurants, or *gulp* Shari's. In light of the renewed blog efforts I opted for a tiny little diner at the corner of Lancaster Dr. and State St. We've both passed it a million times, but never stopped in.

So we took one of the 8 tables in the place and gave our orders. The German sausage special for him and the corned beef hash for myself. Both came with eggs and a choice of bread products.

I will admit that when my meal came I was hungry and tucked into it before I took a picture. But I did take a pic...

You see how I mixed my eggs into and all was one. Up in the corner is the unused jam, not a fan of strawberry. Blackberry is where its at. But more importantly... Do you see the large shreds of homemade corned beef? This stuff NEVER saw a can and tasted glorious!

Fuzzy was jealous. His German sausage was good... But couldn't compare to the homemade corned beef. Soo good.

Now I am stuffed on homemade tacos ala UnderMom. Talking about food is hurting just now. So hot. Going to go find somewhere cool to digest and prepare for the onslaught of the week. Fun times.

Siam Grill *Or* The Power of Cravings

Got off work today and knew that I didn't want the corndogs and tatertots that Redneck Widow had planned for dinner. (This is by no means disparraging her dinner plans, I just don't care for corndogs without... An herbal appetizer.) Spent the max ride home plotting on where I would hunt my own dinner.

There has been a taunt of green curry chicken for nearly a week now. Costco had a premade package and I bought it for Apocalypse.Mom, Vicious, and myself to enjoy a spicy thai dinner. Due to allergies we've been trying to wait for an evening when Redneck Widow isn't here... But she NEVER leaves!

As a result I found myself driving down Halsey chanting "Thai, Thai, Thai, Thai..." When I saw the sign for Siam Grill I whipped into the parking lot. Right behind this...

Four moon roofs! FOUR! And you can't really see the black on black flames on the fenders. Isn't it nifty? I thought so.

Anyway. Siam Grill.

Tiny little hole in the wall restaurant that smelled absolutely wonderful. So I went with it. My general thai restaurant order is the green curry with chicken, leaving out the bell peppers. Because I despise the texture of cooked bell pepper, slimy nastiness. And they were okay with it. My to go order was ready in under 10 minutes. So home I went.

And the verdict? Tasty. Not burn your face off spicy, actual flavor. Just the way I like it. And they deliver to my house with a $20 minimum order + a $3 delivery fee. There's hope for me yet.

Apocalypse.Mom on Location

Hello one and all. 
    Once again I have been traveling.  Traveling is rough for someone like myself who is culinarily challenged because of medical conditions.  So my 18 year old daughter and I drove from Portland, Oregon to Ferdinand, Idaho for my sisters wedding.  My daughter will hereafter be known as the Vicious Muffin.  

   We left Friday morning and I don't think we stopped for a "real" meal until we got to Lapwai, Idaho.  This town is nestled in the Nez Perce Reservation.  We stopped about 6 in the evening to this cute little diner called Donald's.  Vicious ordered chicken strips and fries and I ordered a chicken sandwich no mayo and a green salad.  I forgot to ask if it was breaded, it was.  There was a cook and a waitress for the whole place which probably seated 50?  There was maybe 10 people in there.  If the waitress was not taking a phone order she was trying to take and get orders out.  She forgot our drinks because she was so busy.  She needed more help.  Once we did get our food I ate the salad.  It was the usual iceberg fare.  I took one bite of the sandwich and realized I could not eat it as was.  The batter was like a tempura that was a bit overdone.  Not burned, just to much batter for the chicken.  I paid for the food and left a small tip.  Vicious and I have decided to no longer eat at restaurants with men's names.

    One thing I will say for Donald's is they are good to their regulars.  There was a gentleman who came in the same time as us.  Definitely a regular.  An elderly Native American man.  She treated him like family.  She knew his order, helped him to a seat with his walker and made sure he could eat his food.  This exchange saved my image of Donald's.  I don't think its a bad place, it just needs a bigger staff.  

   Saturday morning we found a great little place.  Very supportive of its local sports teams.  I will tell you all about that next time.

  

Got Pho

So, last night I finally agreed to go to this little Vietnamese restaurant that Sleep Ginger has been talking about for the last year.  She had promised friends of ours a night of Pho. (I have no idea what that means, still) So, we went out to this little hole in the wall in SE called Got Pho where we met up with said friends. I brought my youngest kidlet along so that my household could do whatever they had planned without us.  It was a cute place, with some obvious regulars.

Now, I have some pretty rare food allergies, nothing like Apocalypse Mom but enough that it has been known to cause me some issues.  For instance, peppers, onions, or anything else with capcasin in it causes the typical running nose, watery eyes, sneezing fits etc. So, walking into Got Pho was an adventure all by itself. Luckily the smell was only enough tickle the sinuses and leave me a little blurry eyed.  My adventurous young son ordered a golden garlic stir-fry with beef, which he loved. My companions ordered what they assured me was this infamous pho, but I’m pretty sure it was just a vegetable soup. I ordered the one safe thing for me on the menu, Fried rice with peas, carrots, and beef.

Now, Here I was hoping that I wouldn’t encounter any onions, peppers or soy of any kind. Although I was expecting the fried rice to have soy sauce, I was pleasantly surprised to find that this rice didn’t have any at all. So, while everyone else enjoyed their meals immensely, and the company of our dining experience was great, my meal was bland and generic. But that is the problem I run into with Asian foods and my allergies. So, I have a problem developing an actual opinion about this particular restaurant as I was unable to enjoy the actual specialty food.

All that being said, the portions were great, their menu had a great variety and the price was pretty good for the size of the meal we were given.  The staff was courteous and attentive. All in all it was a good place, but I am not sure I will be joining Sleepy Ginger on her next trip there. 

Sidelines

Sadly, much to Sleepy Gingers disappointment, Sidelines is my favorite type of restaurant. Half sport’s bar, half “family dining”, Sidelines has TV’s all over the room playing a myriad of sports. Their menu sports nearly a full page of appetizers, as well as pizza and sandwiches. They even had some higher priced, “fancier” items on the menu. For instance there was a nicely described T-bone steak as well as a Sea Food platter with lots of aquatic fare that I would never eat.

In my true redneck fashion, I firmly believe that the first meal you sample at a new restaurant is the chicken fried steak. So, of course, that is what I ordered. It was well priced for the size of meal I received. The potatoes were real and were mashed with the skins on (A personal favorite). The breading on my chicken fried steak was great. The steak itself was a little tough and dry, but that is why they make gravy. The gravy was out of a packet, and tasted too much like flour. The vegetables were ok, but not great. All in all I really like the place. I want to go back and try the fish and chips.

I thought the atmosphere was great, the décor was amusing for me at least, and I really enjoyed the food. I found the prices reasonable for the amount of food we got, but not great. But the next time I go, I want to avoid bringing the children with me and check out the bar selection as well. 

Lunch can be a Poetic Thing

Even if its from *gasp* a chain establishment. Today's lunch hour included a hike SE to the Koin 6 building for an exchange of awesome crafted thing for dirty green paper (what is that all about anyway?) The building happened to hold a Quiznos with signs advertising their Lobster and Seafood Salad sandwiches. Or salads, but lets get real here... Lobster salad vs Lobster ROLL. Who wins?

And it was a thing of beauty and poetry. Especially dipped in their creamy "punch to the sinuses" horseradish sauce. That quick bite cut through the sweet briny flavor of the LARGE lobster chunks just beautifully. It was so good I can't regret anything about it.

So not all chains are bad. Some are, this is by no means a resounding reccomendation for everything from a chain, but this experience was beautiful.

Inspiration for a Reset

I was wondering to myself last night why I wanted to start all of this up again, why now? Then I thought back over the last few weeks and counted the number of times I've eaten out or tried something new for take out... If I go back two months I've eaten at 4 new (to me) restaurants and gone out another 6 times beyond that. That's like... 10 blog posts!

Why didn't I take pictures? Take notes? Jot something down? Who knows. But I am from now on. Also thinking we should revisit at least a few of those places.

I mean I'll obviously go back to the Bagdad again. I love that place. Good food and nice movie prices, $2 tuesdays? Come on! Last week I saw Hunger Games and Abraham Lincoln Vampire Slayer for $4, along with a very tasty turkey sandwich, tots, and amazingly good ranch dip ($9.50). You know I'll be back.

Redneck Widow, Apocalypse Mom, and myself have been into Bollywood movies for... Gosh it seems like forever but its probably more like under a year, and as such we've been into the Indian (Hindustani) culture/ cuisine. So we visited Namaste for their dinner buffet with BellaBabe, The Man, and all the kidlets (I'm sure they'll get names later). And it was so good! There was a variety of food, everyone enjoyed themselves, and the kidlets were suprisingly (to me) adventurous and willing to try new things. I was so proud. We have to go back.

There was the bar we went to just the other day... Can't remember the name, not a good experience for me... Why oh why did I order "Pork Medallions in a Rosemary Wine Sauce" at a bar? What was I thinking?? Blech... It was over cooked, over salted nastiness. Doubt I shall return.

And of course the never ending search for "good" chinese. My favorite chinese isn't authentic or high class... I want egg foo young patty in brown gravy with fried rice, so tasty. And difficult to find. Wierd right?

So I promise more adventures, and hopefully with all of these contributors we can churn out at least one post a week. Its a good theory right?

Why am I here?

   Well, let me answer that question.  Mainly the 2 other posters on here thought it would be a good idea.  I don't really consider myself a foodie.  I am culinarily adventurous though. Also, I can't follow a recipe. Recipes equal disaster in my kitchen. None of my dishes are ever the same way twice.  

   How did I get this crazy name....Apocalypse Mom?  I do the shopping for my household which currently includes 8 people. It does fluctuate. I am also responsible for the cooking.  Well when I shop if there is a great deal on a certain item and there are only 10 left?  What to do? What to do?  Buy all 10 of course. Suddenly, everyone in my circle is making light of my shopping ways.  " Hey, are you getting ready for the apocalypse or something?"  Eventually I just started saying yes I am.  

   I must say my additions to this blog may seem somewhat limited at times. You will likely get a review for every chicken sandwich in the city of Portland.  I have some medical conditions which keep me from eating certain foods.  For example no beef or pork. I have been told this makes me a vegetarian. Not vegan as I still eat chicken and fish.  What do you think?

   I look forward to this adventure we are on together.  I hope you have a good time as well.

Hello World...

Hi there readers, I am relatively new to the world of blogging for a purpose. So please bear with me if some of my posts seem to wander around a bit before finding their topic

So I have agreed to sample various restaurants, food carts (Bleh!), "dining establishments" and give my opinion of the meal (If we can always call it that) here on this blog. While SleepyGinger is a good friend of mine, I have often accused her of being too much of a foody. Needless to say, our opinions on these things differ greatly. So this blog should be amusing at times and interesting at others and at the very least educational. I do hope that we at least give a nice show casing of what is available in and around the Pacific Northwest.

Now, a very small bit about myself. I am a full-time student at PSU (GO VIKINGS!!!!!!!!!!), a mother of 3 (4+) children, currently going through a divorce, a published author working on my second and third novels, a registered minister, and according to my children I am an evil mastermind. :-)

We welcome info on new places to eat, recipes to try, or general wackiness to critique. We look forward to hearing from you and hope you feel the same.

Ch- Ch- Changes! (Or How I Roped Someone Else Into This. Muahahahahahaha!)

Okie dokie people! The blog address has changed, the staff has changed (a little), my alias has changed, and the bent has changed... Just breathe and remember "What does not change, stagnates and dies." and we'll get through it.

Its been almost exactly a year since my last entry over on Culinary Quest of LittleRed and BellaBabe and soo much has happened. After returning from (WorldCon Baby!) vacation BellaBabe and I opted to part as roommates and things went quickly from there. Since that time I've moved twice, changed my job twice (though now back at my Downtown Destination so... Yeah...), been layed up with a back injury and am finding my footing again. Currently in a wierd recovery state after falling on hard times and being caught by family and friends.

Family and friends who let me babble on ad nauseum about food, cooking, and restaurants. Family and friends who will go with me and give their opinions... Do we see where this is going? I thought as much. But BellaBabe's location and schedule keep her pretty busy so while she may come back every now and then when I drag her kicking and screaming into having fun, she likely won't be around as much as she used to.

I've invited a long time friend (10 years holy cats!) into joining me in this babbling to the interwebs I enjoy so much. She's a published author, currently working on a second novel, pursuing her Master's degree, raising a gaggle of kids (4+) with her parenting partners, wrangling her parents in their golden years, and trying to have a kickin' good time. The two of us often have vastly differing opinions and enjoy debating and talking out the why and the how of our opinions. She is (for the purpose of these written words) the Redneck Widow.

I'm hoping to bring in other members of our diverse friendverse to chime in with their opinions from time to time.

I've changed my handle from Little Red to Sleepy Ginger as I felt it better suited me. My goal is a post a week. And no, this doesn't count as this week's post. So join me as I start again... Again. And let me know what you want to see.

Laurelwood Public House & Brewery (Culinary Quest 3.8.11)

I woke up yesterday (Sunday) morning** and remembered that BellaBabe had plans. Flipping through my netflix and hulu queue I searched for my standby favorite food shows. After an episode and a half of Anthony Bourdain's "No Reservations" I had enough. I wanted food, and nothing in my kitchen was appealing.

So I got dressed and took off down Sandy Blvd in search of breakfast. The first "Open" sign I saw was at the Laurelwood Public House and Brewery. BellaBabe has been telling me that the Laurelwood has one of the best burgers in town, but the only time we've attempted it we stood at the host's stand for 15 minutes without even a "Be right with you" from passing waitstaff.

But I was hungry, and they were open. So I decided to give their brunch menu a try.

With my stomach growling I pulled into the parking lot and headed inside. I was promptly greeted and allowed to pick a seat. I ordered coffee and it was delivered so quickly I didn't even have a chance to look at the whole menu. When I did find the beverages section I was a little vexed at being charged $2.00 for a 6 oz cup of coffee but not all coffee cups can be the 20 oz miniature flowerpots I have at home. The coffee didn't last long and I set the empty mug on the edge of the table to indicate a need for refills.

And there it sat. For 25 freaking minutes while my waiter passed the table 4 times. When I finally flagged him down and was able to place my order and ask for a refill.

I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt and asked for a breakfast reccomendation as I was torn between the Eggs Benedict (my eternal favorite when its right) with smoked salmon and the Breakfast Burrito (I've been on a spicy kick lately) with chips and salsa. I was told that the breakfast burrito was "The best!" and ordered it with House sausage added (for an extra $1.50).

30 minutes later this plate was placed before me. Heaped with stale tortilla chips and sans the promised salsa. One good thing, the guacamole was fabulous! Bright, vibrant, cooling, slightly chunky without being a difficult dip.

But. Big, big but. That House Sausage that I paid extra for? Flavorless and rubbery. While there did seem to be a decent amount of it, it was completely forgettable. There was twice as much tortilla as there was filling and the filling itself was overpowered by the black beans. I missed the flavors of the egg, potato, and sausage that should have been sharing the stage.

All in all I was not impressed. But I'll try it again, maybe it was an off day?

Laurelwood Public House & Brewery
5115 NE Sandy Blvd
Portland, OR 97213
tel: 503-282-0622

**I apologize for the late post, but mobile blogger wasn't working and after typing this entire thing out on my cellphone, by George I'm going to post it!

Lead us not into temptation... (For it tastes NASTY!) (Culinary Quest 8.2.11)

I know, I know, I know! I'm a bad bad blog girl. Sue me. No really don't. I don't have anything.

In light of many things, including a rather epic trip (WORLDCON BABY!) in *gulp* 15 days, I've been living on the tight side, eating in, at friends' places, or on the very very cheap. My mind is too full of gotta buy, gotta find, gotta packs to really focus on blogging. 

As you may recall from my last post I've become aware that I'm ignoring the restaurants in my neighborhood. This can not stand.

But how to explore the local culinary scene while still saving every available penny for WorldCon? The answer is Restaurant.com. Rather, it appeared to be the answer. With seemingly monthly 80% off sales on restaurant gift certificates it seemed to be a good way to explore the area on the cheap. So back February I dropped about $20 of real money and ended up with $250 in Restaurant.com money. The way it works (usually) is you pay a certain amount and end up with a certificate for $25 off your bill of $35 or more, including an 18% tip. Sounds pretty sweet right?

To date I've used 3. Two at Brother's Crawfish (great food, bad picture lighting. We'll go back and blog about it I promise.) and one on last Friday (July 29th) at Aladdin's Cafe.

Let me paint you a picture... Happy Friday! Its hot, beastly hot. Nothing sounds better than hiding in some air conditioning for an hour or two. BellaBabe and I decide to "splurge" and see Green Lantern at McMenamin's Bagdad theater for $3 a ticket. Whoot for cheap! We arrived at the theater about 20 minutes before the show was supposed to start, thinking to get a pizza and some tots to share during the show. Complete mission failure! They had one person behind the counter taking and assembling orders. The line was epic, the previews were starting... Dilemma! We decided to eat after the show and dashed into the theater to grab seats.

The movie was great! Ryan Reynolds is a sarcastic bastard and I love it, what can I say? BellaBabe and I kept up our running commentary (yes, we're those people who talk in theaters. The tickets cost $3, suck it.) and at the end we were satisfied with our entertainment and giggling in sisterly glee.

After the show, we're hungry, we're wandering Hawthorne, we're spit balling ideas... Suddenly I remember my restaurant.com certificate stash. There are three choices relatively near our house, lets explore somewhere new...

After a little debate (and the fact that I can't find one of the certificates) we decide to try out Aladdin's Cafe. I call ahead to make sure they still take the certificate (ALWAYS CALL AHEAD TO CHECK!) and they do. So off we go.

My excitement over trying new food is slightly dimmed by the dingy strip mall location, but there are many loyal diners (identified by the suspicious glares tossed at the "newbies") so we press on.

Let me point out, this isn't a cultural difference/ foreign flavors distaste. We adore Nicholas on Broadway. I know that if I order the Stephen's Chicken I'm getting at least two if not three meals out of it. And the Gyro? Forget about it. Three meals easy. Not to mention their AMAZING pita bread and humus.

We ordered the humus appetizer. I decided on the combination kabob (kafta and lamb) and BellaBabe bit the bullet and went for the Special of the day, Mansaf — Cooked yogurt with lamb.

I don't want to get into details because... Well I don't want to make myself sick. It's enough to say that (with their lovely open kitchen) I got to watch the cook overcook my lamb twice, the kafta kabob was practically charcoal, the "basmati" rice that came with both dinners was overcooked, I suspect came out of a box, and BellaBabe's portion held the shape of the pan they stored it in... Seriously. As for "The Special"? I'll throw in a pic.

That is curdled yogurt ladies and gentleman. The mouth feel was grainy and disgusting...
We declined dessert and ran home to kill any potential food poisoning with alcohol. (I know it doesn't really work that way, but after that nastiness... Liquor was required.)

Now I'm crossing my fingers for our text attempt... Until then, happy eating!

Food Cart Friday ( Culinary Quest 8.8.11)

So last post I talked about giving a different restaurant.com place a try, but you know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men... Yeah. It went awry.

Alot of personal stress hit last week ( if you should know, you probably already do. <--- how cryptic is that???) and BellaBabe and I spent Friday afternoon/ evening running around the Clackamas end of 82nd like chickens with our heads cut off on a mad dash to acquire everything for our impending trip. (WORLD CON BABY!) As we were winding down and starting to think of which drive thru fast food place we would hit on the way home the Babe signal went off!

It was a message from our old pal Kane-ger-Man. He was suffering from the dreaded, and all too common, "Good Times Deficiency". So after much debate, and sizing up the available space in the RedMobile it was decided that we would meet up at the Jolly Roger for drinks before strolling down to the 12th and Hawthorne food cart pod. So off we went.

At the Jolly Roger I ordered a Bloody Maria (my new favorite drink, and they make them STRONG at the Jolly Roger!) while BellaBabe ordered (...insert the name of the pineapple, coconut, raspberry, rum, and far too much lime concoction she had here--->*), it was okay although too much lime and not enough raspberry. Kane-ger-Man joined us and ordered (... Wow that's a fail twice in a row on remembering drink names), he did not care for it. It tasted like a... Pina Colada gone bad was the best description. He sent that back and ordered a shot of rum instead. He was much more pleased by the straight rum without all the "foofyness". Then the band kicked on and loud reggae band + TINY bar = Headache for LittleRed and an unhappy Kane-ger-Man, so we departed.

After being temporary distraction by a small classic car gathering in a nearby parking lot, we wandered to the 12th and Hawthorne food cart pod and let the sights and smells assault us. Now I must be honest, this is far from the first time we've come here. In fact it's one of our favorite late night destinations. I love the carnival atmosphere brought about my the strings of light under the tent, and the food is nothing to sneeze at either. All together we ordered six items from four different carts.



LittleRed is such a dork she forgot to take a pic of everything before the eating commenced. Above is the Pepperoni Pizza ordered by Kane-ger-Man.

 At Pyro Pizza, BellaBabe and I ordered the Traditional Margarita pizza while Kane-ger-man ordered the Pepperoni.

We gave our names and wandered away while pizzas were assembled and cooked to crispy, chewy, perfection in their wood fired oven. Strolling diagonally across the lot we arrived at Whiffie's Fried Pies and ordered the BBQ Brisket and Mozzarella fried pie.

Incredibly poor cell-phone pic of friend pie awesomeness.

After ordering the pizzas and the pies came the debate. Crepes? No, nothing we can agree on. Potato Champion? Not tonight, can't read the sauce board and not really a fan of their poutine. What about the BBQ place? Never been. Let's go! So over we wandered to Bubba Bernie's in search of something non-piggy (BellaBabe has allergies) and not too substantial. BellaBabe spotted Sweet Potato Tots and seemed intrigued, and while I'm not usually a sweet potato fan I decided to suck it up and try something new. 

They were awesome! We tried them with three sauces, the Texas Smoke, the Honey Bourbon, and the Bubba Sauce. Texas smoke was our favorite followed by the Honey Bourbon. The Bubba Sauce was odd, it seemed like the flavor changed each time we tried it. BellaBabe theorizes it is made up of a mixture of all of their other sauces. I concur with this possibility.

I almost want to end it there. I really really do. Leave it on a high note. But I can't. After everywhere else we opted to try El Brasero. We ordered a beef taco and beef nachos. The taco was bland and extremely dry even with the lime quarter squeezed over it. And the nachos (which I am not a big fan of anyway) were packed full of jalapenos. And neither BellaBabe or I are fans of that "So-hot-I-can't-taste-anything-but-FIRE" style of heat. So... Not so much. But Kane-ger-Man seemed happy to munch away. Besides BellaBabe and I had more than enough food with the pizza, pie, and tots.

Mix all of the above together with a slight buzz, nice atmosphere, and lively conversation and you get one great evening! Thank the Gods It was Friday!

****

There are several more pictures I wanted to add to this but for some reason Blogger won't let me. So they've been uploaded to the Flickr gadget on the right of the page. Sorry for the low quality cell phone pics, the lights were low and I don't have a camera. It's on the list, I promise.

Lunch with the Boss (Culinary Quest 08.12.11)

Lunch with the Boss

I've been debating whether or not I wanted to blog this; I have no pics, and wasn't really impressed. But I consulted the Facebook peoples and the one person who responded (Thank you Mama Unit) said it must be so. And here we go.

My department at work typically which typically runs on 6 people has been running on 3-4 for the last two months now. As one of those 3-4 (for one memorable week 2) people I've been putting in a good bit of overtime. Since my job qualifies as sedentary to light level occupation I'm not so much physically tired as my brain turns to pudding. Funny what 10 hour days will do to your mind, isn't it? Two weeks ago the boss decided to take the three of us to lunch, we just had to pick where.

Personally I usually bring leftovers from home or eat in the cafeteria... On rare occasions when I have cash I'll hike over to the No Fish! Go Fish! cart or down to the food cart pod, but those occasions are very rare indeed. So I bowed out of the lunch location selection. Amusingly enough one of my co-workers had just that morning been complaining that she "always had to pick the restaurant" when she went out with her family. So with malicious glee we all cried "Not it!" in unison and left her with the choice... Muahahahahaha!

Okay, enough with the glee. The day arrived and a location was announced. Jake's Grill. Never heard of it before, but supposedly they have "Great Seafood!" So I googled it. Found the location (10 blocks from work, awesome.) and perused the menu. Some nice looking stuff, some expensive stuff, but still... Not too bad, and I wasn't buying. And away we went.

Very elegant and quite fancy I must say. The waitress was knowledgeable and quick. The menu looked nice. The place was neither empty or crowded and the accoustics were such that we didn't have to yell to hear each other. We went around the table and the orders went like this:
"I'll have the chicken fettuccini" No seafood, but okay.
"I'll have the french dip." What?
"Ooh, that sounds good, I'll have that too." What!? What about the "Great Seafood!" they talked about earlier?

I decided to have some fish, the Tuesday blueplate special in fact. "Herb Horseradish Crusted Atlantic Salmon with summer vegetable medley and roasted red peper risotto cake." Sounds good right? Mmmm horseradish crusted...

I got a salad with my lunch and requested the house made roquefort dressing on the side. Very, very tasty with a nice horseradish kick of its own. When my entree came I was excited, it looked so pretty, bright vegetables, lovely crust on the salmon, pretty sauce decoration... The rissotto cake threw me off a bit, but I've never been a fan of cubes of rice. Reminds me of Chinese takeout fried rice that's been in the box too long.

I picked up my fork, flaked into the salmon, tried a bite... And almost cried. The crust was soggy and flavorless. The fish was nice, but it was just salmon. I couldn't taste any herbs let alone any horseradish... I longed for at least a lemon wedge to brighten things up a bit. It went downhill from there. The summer vegetable medley consisted of a quartered orange carrot, a sliced on the bias yellow carrot, half of an asparagus stalk, and maybe three bell pepper slices all either cooked to mush or still crunchy raw. The rissotto was overdone and oddly sweet from the pepper. All together the best part of my meal was the salad that came before hand. The fish was nicely cooked at least, just... Flavorless.

All together kind of a let down. Which makes me sad.